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James Cameron got plenty of experience creating an alien world in Avatar. Now the 3D pioneer is looking to test his might with the real deal, Mars, though still in three dimensions. Cameron met with NASA administrator Charles Bolden to pitch the idea of including a 3D camera on the space agency's next generation rover, Curiosity, set to launch toward the red planet next year.

"He actually was really open to the idea," Cameron told the Pasadena Star News. "Our first meeting went very well." Beyond the scientific value the detailed images could possess, Cameron may also use the footage in a documentary on Mars in the future.

Since then, Cameron convinced Bolden to replace the non-3D camera NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory had in its possession with a 3D one, capable of filming at 10 frames a second. JPL engineers are worried that the camera won't be ready for the 2011 launch, though they are also excited at how Mars could look using the new hardware.

We'll just have to wait and see if Malin Space Science Systems, the San Diego-based company responsible for Curiosity's other cameras, will have the new 3D cam ready in time.